


lighting the way

by janetcarter



Category: Babylon 5
Genre: Angst, Body Horror, Death, Dreamsharing, F/F, Implied/Referenced Drug Use, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Insects, Minor Character Death, Nightmares, Surreal, Telepathy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-27
Updated: 2019-10-27
Packaged: 2021-01-04 04:44:35
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 637
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21191783
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/janetcarter/pseuds/janetcarter
Summary: When testing her growing powers, Lyta stumbles into someone else's nightmare.





	lighting the way

It was the only way Lyta could test her abilities in what she told herself was an ethical fashion. She waited until night, when there would be ample opportunity to walk through sleeping minds, and lowered her walls. The sensation of the cheap mattress pushing against her back and the itch of scratchy clothes faded, and she fell into the dark. 

When she opened her eyes, she became privy to thousands and thousands of lights like stars floating around her. It was still as breathtaking as the first time. With how many people left and boarded the station each day, she always became dizzy taking in the new constellations. Each pulsing glow was a dream and heartbeat of their own. 

She couldn’t help looking at every flame surrounding her in her eternal search for her own. Some lights were so dim a simple wind from her lips would whisk them away. Others shone so brightly she wished she could reach out and steal their illumination for herself, but her hands only ever passed through. 

A shriek shook her from her trance. It echoed across the endless space, nearly knocking her back to reality. She grounded herself in the mental plane and focused on its trail, still trying to process how she had never experienced such a noise here. The drip of tears, a child’s laughter, and a rumbling rage had all at least once before passed through. But never yet such a harrowing cry.

At its origin was a flame trembling so violently she was afraid it would blow itself out. There was always a risk in blindly delving into someone else’s subconscious, but she couldn’t just walk away, could she? She took a deep breath and poured herself into its frantic light. 

When she opened her eyes, she found herself in a run-down motel hallway with no end in sight. She bolted after the cries, floating syringes and broken glass grazing her arms and legs, and pushed her way into the room.

At her feet was a blonde ghost of a girl, track marks and crimson cuts littering her arms. Before Lyta could think of what to do, the girl’s pale skin sunk away like sand. Her ribs jutted through her clothes, freeing cockroaches to scatter. As Lyta jumped back, she could finally make out a broken name between sobs: “Zoe.” 

Another girl draped in ragged clothes and tears huddled against a wall. She watched in horror as cockroaches crawled from the cavities where her friend’s eyes once were. She hadn’t even noticed Lyta, but her anguish bled into Lyta’s heart like ink in water. 

There was nothing she could do for the corpse. With disregard for any insects beneath her feet, she made her way to the girl against the wall. She wrapped her arms around her form, cold and frail, and gave her someone to cry into. She seemed too hysterical to really register Lyta’s presence, but Lyta held her trembling body close. She knew from experience that if she didn’t, the girl would become no different than the cockroach-infested skeleton on the floor. It may have been too late for her, for _Lyta_, but it didn’t have to be for someone whose light still shone. 

Her surroundings nearly took her along as they disintegrated. 

Lyta’s eyes snapped open. Despite her frantic breath and sweat-soaked sheets, she had never before been so glad to be back in her downgraded quarters. Still, chills ran down her spine when she remembered what had just happened. 

Should she have intruded? Probably not, but she helped; or at least that was what she told herself to justify breaking into other people’s dreams and coming out covered in burns. 

Right or wrong, she just hoped the girl from the nightmare wouldn’t recognize her if they ever crossed paths again.


End file.
